Pouya Rose (of Grenache)
I can’t stop thinking about this incredible lady we met in the Valle back when the team took a trip - Fernanda is truly awesome and so is her wine! so when the sun shines and Seattle summer actually begins, this is the bottle we will be grabbing for as long as it’s around cuz nothing lasts forever and this is limited!
Fernanda Parra is a burst of honesty, life and unapologetic wine-making chops - she is one AMAZING person and I am honored to know her. Like most of the amazing winemakers in the Valle, she is generous with her knowledge and a champion of minimal intervention Mexican wine. Her sweet pup is running around and she often drops everything to go rescue another dog in need. And if you know anything about me by now, she’s exactly the kind of winemaker we love to follow and support (kinda wanna be her) plus I may adopt way too many dogs from her and Veronica (Mina Penelope) so there’s that!!
With a 1st career in biochemistry, she found her passion was in wine so she earned a masters in enology, ampelolog and viticulture in Montpellier, France. She then worked in Sicily, Burgundy and closer to home at a conventional estate in the Valle. Lucky for us, somewhere along the line, she took her experience from these bigger estates and thought to herself “how do I make the wine I want to see in the world in a way that aligns with my values?” So she took all that knowledge and poured it into a small personal product that’s minimal intervention and restorative at its core. Outside of her own winemaking, Fernanda’s a part of the natural wine community in the Valle to meet regularly to taste and talk wine. And she’s working with abandoned vineyards and helping convert others to minimal intervention/biodynamics/etc. Even though the French government has set out definitions for natural wine, there continues to be debate in the community about the definitions of natural wine and Fernanda is in the thick of it with all here in this magical piece of wine heaven called the Valle.
The Grenache grapes for this rose come from the Olegario Sandoval Vineyards that Fernanda organically farms and hand harvests. Planted some time in the 1960s about 15 miles from the Pacific near the eastern edge of the Valle de Guadalupe. Lovely gnarled vines that show their age and their struggle sit in sandy soils. She makes three iterations of Grenache from this vineyard to show the potential in one plot - a sparkling, rose, and red. The rose is made without any skin maceration, maintaining that lighter than light color. Unfined and unfiltered. The wines are fun and bright and irreverent.
As usual, VERY SMALL production so buy it while you can! When it’s gone, we’ll find you another rose but for now, imagine yourself basking in the Mexican sun, friends gathered around - laughter & conversation with a glass of Pouya Rose in hand. Maybe we can convince Fernanda to join?
